Romeo & Juliet 2013
Romeo & Juliet is back in cinemas, with really good looking leads! So I'm a really huge R&J fan. I loved the Baz Luhrman version, and anything that has to do with forbidden love, I'm (usually) a complete sucker for. This time around is no different. I'm also a big fan of period pieces, and wow does this movie deliver in that department. I enjoyed this film tremendously. Though it lacked the maturity and delivery that the Luhrman version brought, the fact that the ages of the actors playing was closer to the actual source material, really made a difference. The fleeting and hurried romance between Romeo and Juliet was quite apparent (mainly due to the fact that the play was adapted and cut very short - 90 min!). But retrospectively, that is quite true in reality of the play as they do fall in love very quickly. This version just made it more obvious. However, I did feel their chemistry, and they behaved like proper teenagers with plenty of lip-locking. Whatever other flaws this came with, it was easy enough to overlook, at least for me. The costumes, setting, cinematography, the cast, and the overall atmosphere really took me to Renaissance Verona, which is exactly where I wanted to be.
Douglas Booth was quite hard to look at in the beginning. You just can't imagine anyone that handsome. As he stares at you when first introduced, you have to look away and blush. It was insane. He was a great Romeo. I fell for his smitten act, and he delivered his lines quite well. Loved the quality of his voice using that Shakespearean lilt.
Hailee Steinfeld is young, and I haven't come across such a youthful Juliet before, so that was nice. She was really cute as Juliet, and believable as having fallen for Romeo. But come on, if Douglas Booth was around, anyone would have fallen as hard as she portrayed.
Also, Ed Westwick has to be the best Tybalt ever. The fervor of his voice and the menace in his facial expressions, I just couldn't get enough of it.
Even knowing how it all ends, I was surprised to find a good amount of tears on my face at the finale. I looked to my friend and was relieved to see I wasn't alone. I guess no matter what, there's a reason this is deemed tragic.
Romeo & Juliet on Broadway
I knew about this long before the film version and I've been dying to see it since. But I'm halfway across the country, and it's during the semester, so I really don't think I'll get to. I'm willing to spend the $500 on tickets and plane fare, but the timing just absolutely does not match up with when I'm free. If I do go see it, Orlando has to be playing Romeo! I haven't completely given up, but my chances are not looking good. Waaahhh, I'm not a big Orlando fan outside of him being Legolas, but I could totally see him as Romeo opposite Condola Rashad.